"The vessels were named after gates in the French fortification
at Quebec City and Louisburg. Although designed specifically to operate
the gates in anti-submarine booms during wartime, these craft served primarily
as training vessels in peacetime. Porte Saint John and Porte Saint Louis
were based at Halifax with summer forays into the Great Lakes while the
others were based in Esquimalt. Porte Dauphine wore a coat of bright red
paint while on loan to the Department of Transport as an environmental
research ship on the Great Lakes".

During the Second World War, at least six Gate Vessels were constructed
by the Canadian Dredge & Dock Co., Ltd., Kingston Ontario. They were
deployed in their traditional role at harbour entrances. These vessels
were transferred to Crown Assets & Disposal Corporation for disposal
at the end of the Second World War. They were:

• GV–3 Built at the Canadian Dredge & Dock Co., Ltd., Kingston ON
1944. Sold post-war as the Foundation Fasolt, later renamed as R.C.C. No.
28 (#154447)
• GV–4 Built at the Canadian Dredge & Dock Co., Ltd., Kingston
ON 1944. Sold post-war as the Foundation Fafnir, later renamed as R.C.C.
No. 29 (#154445)
• GV–20 Built at Canadian Dredge & Dock Co., Ltd., Kingston ON
1944. Sold post-war as C.D. 101 (#171899) (Fate not known)
• GV–22 Built at Canadian Dredge & Dock Co., Ltd., Kingston ON
1944. Sold post-war as C.D. 151 (#134442) (Fate not known)
• GV–(apparently not numbered) Built at Canadian Dredge & Dock
Co., Ltd., Kingston ON 1944. Sold post-war as C.D. 102 (#150487) (Fate
not known)
• GV–(apparently not numbered) Built at Canadian Dredge & Dock
Co., Ltd., Kingston ON 1944. Sold post-war as C.D. 152 (#134443) (Fate
not known)

After the Second World War five gate vessels were constructed in the
Porte–class. They were named for historic gates in Quebec City.

Photographs of the Gate Vessels, when painted dark grey with the white
pendant number, would have been taken shortly after they were in commission.
Gate vessels started their service with YMG pendants but ended their careers
as YNG's. In their latter years, they were mostly manned by naval reservists.

Halifax, Sydney, Shelburne (N.S.) and several other places had
gates and gate vessels during WWII. They used the Battle Class Trawlers
of WWI as gate vessels and often one was painted red and the other green
to indicate the side of the channel they were working. In peacetime there
were no gates, however it is believed that crews went though the exercise
of opening and closing a gate.

It is Commissioning Day for HMCS Porte Quebec YMG 185 in North Vancouver,
1952. Note St Laurent class DDE under construction in the background.
At this time, Porte Quebec is fitted with both boom defence gear
and minesweeping equipment at the stern along with a Bofors A/A gun
on the bow. (DND photo submitted by David Shirlaw)

In this mid-1970's photo, Porte St. Jean is being
used to represent the entire class. Click to enlarge. (National Film
Board photo #1H79-281 LO:39825 submitted by Spud Roscoe VE1BC)

NAME

PENNANT

CALLSIGN

VOICE C/S

LAID DOWN

COMMISS-IONED

PAIDOFF

PORT DAUPHINE

YMG186

CGYL [1]

Native N

16/5/51

10/12/52

12/1995

PORTE DE LA REINE

YMG184

CYVB

Yearly S

4/3/51

7/12/52

19/12/96

PORTE QUEBEC

YMG185

CYVO

Hoodlum G

15/2/51

19/9/52

19/12/96

PORTE SAINT JEAN

YMG180

CYWJ [2]

Wallop F

16/5/50

5/12/51

31/03/96

PORTE SAINT LOUIS

YMG183

CYWS [2]

Thunderbolt U

21/3/51

29/8/52

31/03/96

Like hundreds (maybe even thousands) of Canadian Naval Reserve
personnel, the first taste of naval sea training was as an Officer Cadet
in the University Naval Training Division on board a Gate Vessel.

The Gate vessels were certainly not designed for training relatively
large groups of trainees. Living conditions were cramped and there was
no space for instruction. They had a bit of a poor reputation among reserve
officer trainees and later on they acquired the nickname ‘Pig Boats’. Since
the navy wasn’t offering any other kind of sea time, trainees embraced
every aspect of it, In retrospect, it gave everyone hands-on experience
with all the equipment and jobs on the ship – something which would not
have been acquired on a larger vessel. They were certainly not designed
for training relatively large groups of trainees. Living conditions were
cramped and there was no space for instruction.

The Gate Vessels were the last ships in the Canadian Navy to accommodate
crew members in hammocks. There were some fitted bunks, but the large numbers
of trainees carried at one time necessitated the use of hammocks. Those
who used them grew to like them but the additional chores of lashing it
up at night and taking it down and stowing it in the morning were tedious.
Having a bunk assigned gave a place to relax when off watch whereas hammocks
could not be lashed up and used until later in the evening. Even then a
movie might be projected beneath them or the watch coming off duty after
midnight might have a ‘mug-up’ (late night snack) beneath the hammocks
while men slept above.

VITAL STATISTICS

Displacement: 429 tons full load

Dimensions: 125' 6"L x 26'4" beam x 13' draught

Speed: 11 knots

Crew: 3 officers, 20 men

Armament: 1 x 40 mm A/A gun ( later removed)

ELECTRONICS FIT

As always, there were variances depending on the era.

RADIO COMM

(1960's). This excerpt from the main photo shows
the antennas. Click to enlarge. (DND photo provided by Spud Roscoe)

HF "Seaway Set" as recalled by John MacFarlane.
An example was found in Port St. Jean

OTHER

Type 135

ASDIC

765 AJ

Echo Sounder

LN-27

Radar (specs not known at this time)

BT-501

Decca Radar (specs not known at this time)

BT-502

Decca Radar (specs not known at this time)

Model (?)

Sound Reproducing Equipment (SRE)

Some gate vessel photos reveal a flattop antenna between the
foremast and main mast. In later years, communications were conducted from
the wheelhouse using state of the art ship/ship/shore equipment. These
vessels had concerns regarding top weight and stability.

Terry Misner recalls. "My tape recorder came in handy for copying broadcasts
while we were at sea as not only were we Sparkers, we were a bit of everything
being 'reg force' and all."

RADAR

A document from 1952, indicates the type LN-27 radar was fitted. In
latter days, they co-located 2 radars (E/I bands) on the main mast.
These were the BT-501 and 502 series slaved together and were part of the
Decca family of radars. (BT means Bright-Track). When the Gate vessels
were paid off they were fitted with Decca radars - one for the X band and
one for the S band.

This photo of Porte Dauphine shows the radar in the upper left corner
of the photo. Taken in 1985. (Photo # IST85-2016 by Capt. Andrea Rowe)

ASDIC

A document from 1952 indicates the Gate vessels were equipped with Type
135 ASDIC, commonly called Harbour Defence ASDIC (HDA). This technology
was developed by the Royal Navy late in WWI and was first used in
1939. The 135 set first entered service in 1942. It was a special,
sea-bed mounted form of the shipborne ASDIC. The US had access to
this technology and called their HDA a "Herald" - Harbor Echo Ranging And
Listening Device if left on the seabed. It cases where the seabed
and tides were unsuitable, the ASDIC could would be secured to the side
of the ship.

The 135 set used a magnetostriction transducer operating at 15 KHz and
suspended on a long shaft. The circuitry was based on the Model 758 echo
sounder. A printout was provided on a type 758 synchronous recorder.

NOTES:

[1] When new with the RCN, her call sign was CGYL. As CCGS PORTE DAUPHINE
her call changed to CGBM. When the Coast Guard returned PORTE DAUPHINE
back to the navy, she was assigned CZGL.